2004 Baltimore Orioles Preview
The Bottom Line:
The Orioles will have the most improved offense in baseball from last season to this, but they seem to have forgotten that they have to pitch every other half-inning. The front office, feeling liberated from Albert Belle’s contract, went out and spent money just to be spending it. Unfortunately, it won’t improve their position in the standings. They’ll be right where they’ve been for a while now: fourth place. The AL East dilemma will curse the Orioles again, and until the Yankees fall apart, this division will be a battle for second. This year for the Orioles, it will be a battle between fourth and fifth.
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Line Up:
The Orioles spent a lot of money
bolstering their line up, and it should result in a good run-scoring bunch, with
a good combination of speed, power, experience, and youth. Unfortunately,
they’re still only the fourth best offense in the division.
- Melvin Mora, 3B: Mora had a great first half,
but injuries slowed him down. He’s moving to third base for the first time
in his career, though that probably won’t be a problem for him. He seems to
me to be more suited as a super-sub rather than an everyday player, but if
2003 was no fluke – mind you, it very well could have been – he’ll play
every day.
- Jerry Hairston, 2B: Hairston missed over 100
games last year, but he did manage to steal 14 bases in 58 games. He’s
reported to be healthy, but the second base spot is by no means his. Brian
Roberts needs to find a place to play too.
- Miguel Tejada, SS: I expect a career season fro
Tejada. He’s in a better line up and a smaller ballpark.
- Jay Gibbons, RF: Gibbons is also poised for a
career year. He’s reaching his prime and has real line up protection for
the first time in his career. You probably didn’t notice that he drove in
100 runs last year.
- Rafael Palmeiro, 1B: Raffy’s back for his
second tour with the O’s. He’s not going to bat .320 and hit 47 homers
anymore, but there’s nothing wrong with .280 and 35. He hasn’t shown any
signs of slowing down.
- Javy Lopez, C: Lopez is an improvement, but
there’s no way – even in the smaller park – that he’ll come close to his
monster 2003 numbers. He’s not much of a defensive contributor either.
- Larry Bigbie, LF: Bigbie was great in his
second half call up. With the retooled Baltimore line up, he’s in a
position to develop without pressure. He’s 30-homer guy in the making.
- David Segui, DH: This is where Brian Roberts
will be when Segui goes out for the season with another injury.
- Luis Matos, CF: Like Bigbie, Matos was
impressive in his mid-season call up, batting .303 with 15 stolen bases in
109 games. He could end up as the leadoff man before the season ends.
Pitching:
In their huge winter spending spree, Peter Angelos forgot
that he might need some pitching to win. He does have some good young arms, and
he did bring back Sidney Ponson, but he would have been better off spending his
Lopez or Palmeiro money on a quality pitcher.
- Sidney Ponson, R: This was really a good
overall deal for the Orioles: Ponson finally paid off, they traded him to
San Francisco for a great prospect in Kurt Ainsworth, and then managed to
resign him. He’s a decent pitcher, but not a true ace.
- Rodrigo Lopez, R: Lopez fell far from his 2002
Rookie of the Year campaign. It remains to be seen whether he can turn it
around.
- Kurt Ainsworth, R: He could be their ace of the
future. He might have been already had he not been sidelined with injury
for most of the second half. He seems like a good bet to me.
- Omar Daal, L: Daal has been an on again/off
again type of starter – mostly off.
- Eric Dubose, L: Dubose made 10 starts last year
and kept his ERA under 4.00.
Closer Jorge Julio, R: One
of those guys that will give you a heart attack but seems to pull through in the
end, kind of like Jose Mesa.
| Remarkably Similar |
|
AB |
R |
H |
HR |
RBI |
SB |
BB |
BA |
OPS |
|
| Javy Lopez (12) |
4003 |
508 |
1148 |
214 |
694 |
8 |
271 |
.287 |
.839 |
| Roy Campenella (10) |
4205 |
627 |
1161 |
242 |
856 |
25 |
533 |
.276 |
.860 |
Those are Campanella’s career numbers. His career was cut
short by a car accident that left him paralyzed, and his tragic fate (and the
fact that he played for the Dodgers) could be the reason he waltzed right into
the Hall of Fame without a debate. At this point, Lopez is really not in his
class, as it takes him 12 years to stack up to Campy’s 10, plus Campanella had
more than one great season (He won the NL MVP three times). Lopez could still
turn himself into a Hall of Fame candidate, but it will take at least three more
years similar to his incredible 2003 to do it.
Fantasy Top 5:
- Miguel Tejada
- Javy Lopez
- Jay Gibbons
- Rafael Palmeiro
- Jorge Julio
Posted by at March 30, 2004 11:45 PM